question about lab assistant job

[elephanthobo]

I currently work as lab assistant at a lab on campus and do things like cell culture, western blotting, running gels, etc. Does this count as research even though it's my job and I won't get published?

Thanks for your input.

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[peterpansy]

I think it counts, although usually schools prefer to see you designing and carrying out your own experiments and contributing significantly to the work of others, if you can't have a project of your own.

 

[BigRedPremed]

I'd count it as research. As long as you're doing things that specifically contribute to someone's (or your own) research rather than generic stuff (like washing beakers or making solutions), I'd consider you a research assistant. It would also be good to ask questions to find out why you're running that gel or doing that PCR.

 

[A Tree]

Of course it is! But as the others say, try to at least get a sense of the experimental design. But the nitty gritty is a huge part of what research is...troubleshooting, tinkering with the experiment, cloning and re-cloning until you find what you're looking for... No scientist is above what you're doing.

If you're running westerns and they get used in a figure for a paper, it's my opinion that you should have authorship on that paper. But what constitutes authorship varies wildly between labs and between fields. My lab (I am a lab manager) has had numerous undergraduate interns on papers over the years.

It's always worth asking about the PI's policy on authorship--ideally before you start working with the group. And I mean the PI--not the postdoc or grad student. It is a potentially sensitive subject.

Anyway, definitely start asking questions about what you're doing. Is there a weekly group meeting you could start going to? That might help put things in perspective, and be educational, for when you get asked what you did in an interview.

 

[zimmie256]

Of course it is! But as the others say, try to at least get a sense of the experimental design. But the nitty gritty is a huge part of what research is...troubleshooting, tinkering with the experiment, cloning and re-cloning until you find what you're looking for... No scientist is above what you're doing.

If you're running westerns and they get used in a figure for a paper, it's my opinion that you should have authorship on that paper. But what constitutes authorship varies wildly between labs and between fields. My lab (I am a lab manager) has had numerous undergraduate interns on papers over the years.

It's always worth asking about the PI's policy on authorship--ideally before you start working with the group. And I mean the PI--not the postdoc or grad student. It is a potentially sensitive subject.

Anyway, definitely start asking questions about what you're doing. Is there a weekly group meeting you could start going to? That might help put things in perspective, and be educational, for when you get asked what you did in an interview.

This is certainly true. And if you did not get authorship for something like this, at the very least, you should be mentioned in the acknowledgements of the paper for your contributions to the research.

I don't see anything wrong with classifying this as research, but as others said, make sure you get a sense of the research question, how the methodology was developed, and keep tabs on any important findings. When you go to interviews, you'll likely be asked to describe your research, and they won't be looking for a procedural decription at this point, so make sure you understand the big picture of the research you're involved with.

 

[dr.z]

I currently work as lab assistant at a lab on campus and do things like cell culture, western blotting, running gels, etc. Does this count as research even though it's my job and I won't get published?

Thanks for your input.

It is part of research. If you can get your own project, it would be better though.